Friolo v. Frankel: 14 years of Maryland litigation and still going strong

Friolo sued Frankel under the Maryland wage payment and collection statute, and the rest has been 14 years of trial and appellate history, including the appointment of a special master and three trips to Maryland’s highest court. A lot of the fighting has dealt with attorneys’ fees, specifically the reasonableness of requested fee-shifting under Md. Code Ann., Labor and Employment article, §3-507.2.

“This case is making its third appearance in this Court, having visited the Court of Special Appeals twice and having occupied the attention of the Circuit Court for Montgomery County on three occasions, one of which involved two separate proceedings. Like Kaufman and Hart’s man who came to dinner, it is wearing out its welcome….

“We would admonish Friolo and Goldsmith [ed. Plaintiff’s counsel] to be mindful of the risks of excessively gilding the lily and suggest to both parties that it is not too late to negotiate a settlement.”

For those poorly formed in the American theatrical tradition such as myself, this is a link to Wikipedia’s entry on The Man Who Came to Dinner. Since I have no culture, I probably would have gone with Groundhog Day.